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Get paid to meet potential clients.

by iamchrisgreen
14 replies
We get inbound calls from the marketing we do and many of them ask for prices on SEO.

Thing is that you realise quick that most people are "shopping around" for prices.

So here's what I tried this week and it worked a treat.

A lady called. She's in a competitive market and she wanted to know how much it would cost to have seo for key phrases X, Y, Z etc...

I told her I didn't know ...

I then explained that anyone that could give her a price based on that should not be trusted because they don't have enough information.

Sooooo... I then explained that what works for us is doing an "audit" of her site and the market she is in. Work out who the leaders are, how they got there and what the chances are of competing.

For this we will charge you £XXX.00 and based on that we can meet up in person and work out the best plan of action.

She said yes, that's a good idea.

I invoiced her.

She paid the day after.

I meet her next week.

I think that's a good result ... hope it gives you something to think about ...
#clients #meet #paid #potential
  • Profile picture of the author Warrior Ben
    Chris, I really like this!!

    I don't do much in terms of selling SEO services (I primarily stick to Mobile), but I think this is a great way to build credibility with a new client. Not to mention you are absolutely right about not knowing right off the bat. Every SEO project is different, so to quote a standard price is just kind of ridiculous.

    -Ben
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  • Profile picture of the author iamchrisgreen
    Thanks Ben.

    I guess you could do the same with whatever you are selling.
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  • Profile picture of the author iamchrisgreen
    Ben ... I also like that you post so much you have a "best of"
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  • Profile picture of the author Warrior Ben
    LOL, well I had my signature the same for so long that I decided to change it up a bit and use it as a backdoor to send people to my blog! We'll see how it works out...

    -Ben
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  • Profile picture of the author maverick8
    Hey iamchrisgreen,
    Its a great way to qualitfy leads if they are serious they will pay. If not than you probably dont want to be working with them. I have been thinking about this strategy for a while. I get people fishing for prices all the time and i cant give them any becuase i dont enough about their business, industry and market.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
    Offering a report with a small price tag compared to your eventually larger services is called a "monkey's paw." The idea comes from when ships tie up in harbor, and there's no way someone is going to throw a giant line from the ship to shore and have anyone catch it. So attached to the big thick line is a little thin one, called the monkey's paw, that Mr. Deckhand can easily chuck over to his shore counterpart and bring the thick one along with it.

    When I do this, I tell prospects that although this is a small up front investment, they own it when I give it to them. You do not want to give prospects a free education, but this protects you a bit. So if they want to take my expertise and shop it around, although I don't want them to do this, they can and it won't hurt me. I still got paid for the work I did. Then, if they do work with me for fulfillment, I deduct this initial investment off their larger order. I tell them this is the case at the start, of course.

    Last time I used this I went to see a furniture sales shop owner. She wanted me to do things for free; pay later. She couldn't afford $200 for an initial report. Qualified out. No stress for me!
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  • Profile picture of the author sundaymorning
    This is a really good way of doing business. I think I'm going to keep that in the back of my mind.
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    • Profile picture of the author iamchrisgreen
      Originally Posted by sundaymorning View Post

      This is a really good way of doing business. I think I'm going to keep that in the back of my mind.
      Or you could put in the front of your mind and try it out
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  • Profile picture of the author arnelcans
    That is a good idea. Good luck!
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  • Profile picture of the author sdentrepreneur
    Great idea....I use similar to review clients Social Media Marketing !!!
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  • Profile picture of the author Teez
    Originally Posted by iamchrisgreen View Post

    We get inbound calls from the marketing we do and many of them ask for prices on SEO.

    Thing is that you realise quick that most people are "shopping around" for prices.

    So here's what I tried this week and it worked a treat.

    A lady called. She's in a competitive market and she wanted to know how much it would cost to have seo for key phrases X, Y, Z etc...

    I told her I didn't know ...

    I then explained that anyone that could give her a price based on that should not be trusted because they don't have enough information.

    Sooooo... I then explained that what works for us is doing an "audit" of her site and the market she is in. Work out who the leaders are, how they got there and what the chances are of competing.

    For this we will charge you £XXX.00 and based on that we can meet up in person and work out the best plan of action.

    She said yes, that's a good idea.

    I invoiced her.

    She paid the day after.

    I meet her next week.

    I think that's a good result ... hope it gives you something to think about ...

    Chris may I ask how you go about you billing and invoicing you recurring fees in the UK.
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  • Profile picture of the author emrom
    Let us know how it goes. Also, do you think that meeting her was the closing of the deal?
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